If you happen to be working in a customer service occupation such as a call center position then you will be required to sit at a desk and use a keyboard to access databases and carry out computer related work while also taking calls from customers. In some businesses this work can be fast paced and making time to take a break can sometimes be easily overlooked.
It is of course the responsibility of an employee to take their assigned break but what happens when a fellow worker has called in sick leaving a gap in the workplace that places additional pressure on the remaining staff members? Leaving your desk and telephone lines flashing with incoming calls while you are away drinking coffee certainly would not go down very well with an employer particularly if the reputation of a business is reliant on providing good customer service.
Many employers however now realize the nangs delivery importance of providing relief cover for staff so they can have regular breaks or because they are away from the workplace through sickness or for various other reasons. They also realize that having staff members on extended sick leave as a result of a workplace related injury not only places extra strain on existing staff resources, but it can also have the effect of compromising a businesses customer service relationship with its clients through poor customer service delivery.
In my workplace we have a designated health and safety delegate who has the job of finding out through a 6 monthly survey if anyone has a disability of any sort or whether the resources they are using need to be replaced. In fact last year I mentioned my chair was uncomfortable and not supporting my back enough. Two days later an Occupational Health Consultant proficient in posture visited me in the workplace and within a week I had a brand new ergonomic comfortable chair to sit in all paid for by my employer.
Having an employer who is aware of their obligations with regard to the health and well-being of staff is certainly helpful. However, if an employer is not proactive in ensuring customer service call center operators are free from harm through for example the poor positioning of a computer monitor or they have a defective chair that could exacerbate a sore back condition, then there is a real risk that employee could end up taking valuable time off work with a sore back or neck.
In summary, the downside of having a poor health and safety program in the workplace is that staff wellbeing could easily be overlooked in essence because having defective equipment and resources has the potential to cause all sorts of health problems from RSI, eye stra